Dry weather expected at Bahrain

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After a winter fraught by wet test days the teams will be relieved to find there’s no surprises in the Bahrain Grand Prix weather forecast.

All three days are expected to be dry with temperatures slightly above 30C throughout.

The Bahrain International Circuit is quite exposed and drivers are used to coping with windy conditions at the track. The wind is expected to blow at around 8-9kph from the south, which although not that strong may help the cars pick up some speed along the main straight, making those crucial decisions about gear ratios even trickier.

With lots of dry running forecast for practice expect the teams to get plenty of running in to make up for lost time in testing.

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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26 comments on “Dry weather expected at Bahrain”

  1. MMh, i thought i ordered Rain to make preductictions harder…

  2. No sandstorms expected then?

    Maybe some cars will redevelop there shark fin engine covers to work like sails helping propell the cars on parts of the track.

  3. Andrew White
    9th March 2010, 10:07

    Hmm, dry weather in Bahrain. Is this really news?

    1. It’s a fair point. I think F1 Fanatic readers generally appreciate weather conditions for a race weekend are always significant even if it’s not something headline-grabbing like heavy rain.

      Last year, for example, we knew that a dry, cool race would favour Brawn ad a dry, hot race would favour Red Bull.

      We’ve not got that kind of understanding of where the 2010 cars are yet but it’ll come. Keeping an eye on the weather conditions at each race, regardless of how newsworthy they are at the time, will help us understand that.

      1. I think with Bahrain, it’s not a case of “It’ll be dry” but more “How hot will it be?”.

        We all know that those few degrees can make a big difference to tyres and therefore cars. We saw a lot of it last year with some cars coping better with higher/lower temperatures than others.

        And as you mention, the wind is always a factor. It may be desert, but Bahrain is a small, flat island and those coastal breezes are never very far away.

    2. Maybe not, but if it wasn’t warm and dry, that *would* be news.

      1. Last year going to Bahrain after two wash outs in a row was such a relief. The teams stood there on the track going 2% chance of rain? It could happen.

    3. We want turbos
      9th March 2010, 13:47

      I was anticipating snow!

  4. Thanks Keith. Not much of a surprise but it’s interesting to know about wind conditions which will influence set up and benefit certain teams (although we don’t know who yet) and then dealing with the sand blowing across the track.
    I also like how the weather is followed every GP because no matter how unlikely, there always is the possibility of a surprise. Wet Monza in 08 and wet Hungary in 06 were a big change but even slight weather changes can make a big difference. Or maybe it’s just because I’m British and therefore sterotypically obsessed with the weather :P or a sign that I really do care too much about f1?

  5. I have thought since I saw the first shark fin on an F1 car that it must destabilise the car in crosswinds.
    I guess the gain must be greater than the loss.

    1. 200mph wind forwards, vs a maximum of maybe 30/40mph sideways?

  6. Will the teams be prepared for a dry race? as so much of the testing has been done in wet or damp conditions :p

    1. Well I suppose some of them cannot be sure (especially the new teams, but maybe Williams, Sauber and Torro Rosso as well). With only running in the cold they have made their calculations based on experience.
      But will their engine cooling be OK, what will the brakes do, any influence on engine power and aerodynamics, etc.

  7. Ned Flanders
    9th March 2010, 10:45

    That’s the problem with F1 in the Middle East. Guaranteed dry races…

    Then again, I remember back to the first Bahrain GP back in 2004, it was actually raining before the race began! Also, wasn’t a GP2 Asia race at Dubai called off because the rain was so heavy the track flooded? And the the Moto GP round at Qatar was hit by thunderstormslast season!

    So you never know, mabye one day we might get a wet GP at Bahrain. And perhaps the event will be marked by a flying pig!

    1. I bet that we do get a wet Bahrain race within the next 5 years. I really think it will happen

    2. Was it last year when some pre-season testing at the circuit had to be cancelled due to a sand storm? If that happened for a GP how long could they delay it for considering all the logistics and TV, I think that MotoGP race mentioned was postponed for 24 hours.

      That has got me thinking, when was the last time a GP was not run on a Sunday and when was the last time a race was cancelled completely?

      1. Yeah, I think Toyota was ridiculing other teams who didn’t feel like spending a fortune on a test in Bahrain. They said that you had to spend extre to go to Bahrain so you could be sure that you had dry weather and then they couldn’t run due to the sand :)

        They tried to get Ferrari to give up their private day on the track so all teams present could test a day extra.

    3. Mmmmmm… Pig *drools*

      Being a typical Brit, I always rather enjoy the weather reports personally. After all, it is one of our national obsessions. But here’s the thing, the British Isles has the most complex weather system in the world. We actually have twice the number of definable weather patterns of most countries, helping to make up our mostly moist climate.

      Oddly, we also have the most diverse mineral deposits in the world as well.

      Okay, am being way too geography teacher now – scary! Off to sew some leather patches on a jumper.

  8. Dry in the middle east? What next Dolly Parton sleeps on her back? The pope has a balcony? Sorry Keith could not miss that one. Keep up the good work.

  9. Eje Gustafsson
    9th March 2010, 15:03

    Love it when it gets to the point of reporting weather for the race because then it starts to really get imminent that we are finally going racing again…
    To steal a phrase from a individual associated with Red Bull Racing in regards to the weather… “Only Bah-Rain”

  10. Thanks for the update Keith, but I had to chuckle when I saw the headline…

  11. Remember last year, although the Brawn was clearly the best, race results were spoilled by safety cars then two wet races, everybody was glad to see the dry track at Bahrain!

  12. :) I know Bahrain is not typically associated with wet races, but as Ned Flanders correctly pointed out, we do have some sudden rain from time to time so you never know lol. Last weekend during the GP2 and the Australian v8 races the weather was quite dusty and the visibility was a bit poor.. I personally can’t wait for a wet race in Bahrain, and like Steph, I do see it happening soon..

    To give you a taste of what you’re going to see this weekend, please check out my flickr stream of the GP2 races (Feb. 27-28th) and excuse my poor photography skills :s. Some of the pictures show how hazy the weather was, but it’s starting to clear up these days..

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/47930768@N04/

    I also took some pictures of the preparations going on for the Formula 1 weekend :) It was very exciting to attend the GP2 race specially knowing that in a few days it will be time for F1!

  13. surprising! thanks for the update haha ;)

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